Rear AC Line Fix

[SmokinAsh]

Hello All,

I recently picked up a GX470. And, as you all know, amazing truck. However, I have a leak in my AC line going to the rear condenser. Searches on the topic mainly show me how to delete the rear AC, but not how to fix it. Has anyone on here fixed the rear AC lines? If so, did you replace the entire line or just cut and fix the pipe right at the leak? If you did replace the entire line, how hard was it? I know people will suggest just do the AC delete, but we'll often have kids in the far back and so AC is a must.

I've heard this is a great community so thanks ahead of time for your experience!

 

[Rednexus]

Do you mean the rear hard line that goes from the condensor to the AC? I accidentally punctured mine with a sawzall (long story) and lost all of my freon through a small pinhole. I was able to DIY repair the pinhole using Alum Bond and recharge the AC. This repair has been in for around 9 months now and is still going strong. The hard line to the rear is around 8' long and looks to be a bear to remove, plus it's not available from Lexus. In my case it was 100x easier to just patch the tiny hole in-place.

Other options would be to find a good used line and replace it, or have it removed and repaired with a TIG welder (if the hole is larger than can be repaired using Alum Bond). The other complicating factor is finding the location of the leak - I'm pretty sure the OEM freon charge in these GX's does not contain UV dye (mine certainly did not when it all escaped via the pinhole), so you'd need to add some freon with UV dye to find the leak location in order to repair it. This will all leak right back out, which is an environmental concern as R134A is toxic and a potent greenhouse gas.

Unless you have some solid DIY skills for working on AC systems, plus the tools (manifold guage and vacuum pump), it's probably something I'd leave to a shop who specializes in AC repair. If it's just repairing the small pinhole and evacuating/pressure testing/recharging your system, it shouldn't be too expensive, I probably had 2-4 hours in mine as a DIY, plus <$50 in parts.

 

[SmokinAsh]

Hi Rednexus,

Yes I do mean the hardline AC going back. Thank you for the info, that’s exactly what I’m looking for. My mechanic found the leak and said it was a pinhole leak due to corrosion but was at a loss at how to fix it. I’ll ask him next week to point out and mark exactly where it is. I’ll track down an AC shop that can do a repair in place as it sounds like that’s the best way to go. The few places I’ve contacted so far seem to prefer to replace the entire line (very expensive). But I think it’s just a matter of finding the right shop.

If anyone has any auto AC shop recommendations for western Canada (Vancouver to Okanagan) please feel free to send them my way. I’m sure I’ll get one with a bit more time on the phone.

 

[SmokinAsh]

And thanks for the tip about the Alum Bond. I’ll look into that too.

 

[Rednexus]

If it is just a pinhole it is a straightforward DIY if you have good access to the spot. You just have to get the area squeaky clean before applying the Alum Bond. If you can DIY that part it would just need an evac, pressure test, and recharge, which most shops can do.

EDIT: You'll also want to have a new drier bag installed to suck any moisture trapped in the system. It's a $20 part and 15 minutes of work to replace it.